2017ChateaudeFosse-SecheSaumurBlanc‘Arcane’Loire,France

<p>2017 Chateau de Fosse-Seche Saumur Blanc ‘Arcane’ Loire, France</p><p>Biodynamic. Fosse Seche was discovered by the Benedictine monks around the 10th century and was already producing wine in the early 1200’s. It is a knoll (17 ha. of vines, not far from Doué-La Fontaine) of silex (flint) embedded and exploded into oxides of iron. The geological name is Eolithe. About 70% of the production is Cabernet Franc and 30% Chenin Blanc. Biodynamic, in fact surrounded by 30 hectares of woods and fields (a national bird sanctuary), bee hives, and now goats, makes this the perfect bio-dynamic milieu. A special feature is that Guillaume Pire and his brother Adrien vinify and age their rouge Eolithe in concrete “eggs” and older barriques.Grown on a stoney Jurassic plateau of flint with gravel and some clay, but free of lime so that soil allows for deep root growth. Low yields of 30hL/ha. Fermentation for 9 months at a cold temperature and aged on the lees in old beer transportation tank.</p>